Reality
by Ford's Lady
Summary: What really happens at the site of a UFO incident, after the aliens have taken what they came for? Chapter 3 is up
1. Chapter 1

Thanks to Gerry and Sylvia Anderson for creating such a superb series. I do not own anything, I am merely borrowing. 

Title - Reality

Rating PG - PG-13 - Bit gory

"Tell me about it Alec, but this is the reality of the conflict. I wish Henderson would get off his high horse and realise that instead of giving me his usual verbal diarrhoea."

"He's been on the phone then?"

"Oh you might know, the usual crud, how it shouldn't have got through the moonbase defences in the first place, skydiver should have been a bit quicker off the mark, too many eyewitnesses"  
Straker paused and lit a cigar, offering one to Freeman who did likewise.

"The eyewitnesses were easy to deal with, the film on all their cameras is being analysed now. By the way What happenned to the alien?"

"Vanished. The mobiles are out searching and sky-one is our eye in the sky."

"I see, what about his family?"

"I suppose we will have to fob them off with some story." There was an awkward silence as the two men momentarily reflected. Their thoughts were interrupted by the intercom on the desk and a familiar voice,

"I have Lieutenant Ellis on the video link for you sir"  
The two men put out their cigars and left the office.

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It had been too long a day, first the deal with the firm in Sweden crumbled around him, 6 months work for nothing, all his fault of course; then the power failure and finally he had managed to pour coffee all down his shirt. He turned up the radio in the car and hummed along to the music. He suddenly became aware of a whirring noise. Turning down the radio he listened, it wasn't the car. Slightly unnerved, he increased the pressure on the accelerator and turned up the radio. Sill the noise persisted but now he was sure it was louder. Yes, definitely louder, and closer. Something was moving above the line of trees. No. What was he thinking, it had been a long stressful day, he was tired.

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"Confirm UFO beyond interceptor range, heading for Earth." The monotonous voice of SID ran out around the SHADO control room.

"Do we have the trajectory termination yet?" Straker had resumed his position in command.

"Just coming through now sir," Ford replied sat in front of his control panel, "course still 028-563, ETT area 21, reference 4-09 green."

"Alert the mobiles. Get mobile 3 to move in, the other two continue the search for the first UFO." Colonel Freeman entered the room, carrying a map of the area. Turning to Straker he asked,

"The interceptors missed?"

"Yes, it was violently changing course, now past the defences it's maintaining a constant flight path."

Paul Foster's voice came over the intercom,

"Mobile 3 moving into position now."

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He blinked, he was still alive but he was aware of a severe pain in his leg, his head felt sore too. Ahead of him, he could make out the smoking outline of his car. All he could remember was an almighty sound like a gun being fired. The pain in his leg was getting unbearable. Lying on the ground, with his ear to the ground he could make out the sound of footsteps coming towards him. Relief swept over him, temporarily numbing his leg, someone had seen the crash and come to help. He pushed himself over onto his back to see who it was. His eyesight was blurred, all he could see was the outline of a figure. They appeared to be dressed in a red suit of some kind. They seemed to be carrying something. A gunshot rang out. There was a suffocating pressure on his chest then pain like he had never know in his life. He felt himself being hurled onto his back, a figure stood over him, something shiny in their hand, they brought it down, he screamed.

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"No sir, nothing as yet."

"Keep looking Colonel, I want that alien, preferably alive."

"What now?" Alec Freeman helped himself to a shot of whisky.

"We wait."

"You dont think it could have come to collect the first alien?"

"It's definitely a possibility Alec after that first one blew up."

"Commander!" Straker spun round at the sound of Foster's voice,

"Go ahead Paul,"

"No sign of the alien, but we've found another body."

"Seal-off the area, myself and Colonel Freeman are on our way."

"I should warn you sir, it's a bit of a mess." Ford could have sworn he heard a wretching noise in the background. It had possibly not gone unnoticed by Straker,

"What do you mean 'a bit of a mess'?"

"Well there was a car crash," Foster faltered, "and there is a body...uhm...and it's...well...in pieces."

"Fetch Jackson will you Alec."

In less than a quarter of an hour, the three men were in Straker's car.

"Aside from the fact that we have the second mutilated body in less than a week, we now have two aliens running around the countryside."

"I know Alec, and I am beginning to believe that you're suspicion about the second one coming to get the first is well founded."

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Paul Foster would say he had a strong stomach. Flying supersonic jets made it somewhat of an advantage but this had made him more than queasy. This wasnt helped by the fact that several of his colleagues had been sick. He couldnt blame them, the sight that had greeted them was nothing short of a blood bath. A carcass of what appeared to be a man, the chest cavity had been cut open. Multiple organs had been removed, amongst them the heart and lungs. But what had unnerved him the most was the head. It was hollow, the brain had been removed.

The sound of an engine signalled the arrival of Commander Straker.


	2. Chapter 2

"Good evening sir," Foster tried to keep his voice in check, he noticed he was shaking. This had not gone unnoticed by Straker, 

"Sit in the car Paul," he said, "Colonel Freeman and myself will take over."

"It's over there," Foster pointed in the direction of the body, before sighing and walking towards the car.

Straker and Freeman, followed by Jackson found themselves looking upon the mangled body.

"Dear God in heaven," was the response of Freeman, who had to steady himself against a nearby tree before edging out of sight. Jackson, meanwhile, was knelt beside the body. He was speaking quietly as if talking to himself,

"Mutltiple organ removal again...the major organs...also the brain," then getting up and turning to the Commander, "this body will have to be brought back to SHADO control, I cannot tell which, if any, other organs have been taken, I shall require the facilities to carry out a full autopsy."

"Very well Jackson," calling to a nearby operative Straker said, "Get this body into the mobile and a couple of you...try and...clean up some of the...blood." With that, Straker turned on his heel and swept out of sight.

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The trip back to SHADO HQ was a quiet one. Straker was pleased to see that some colour had been restored to Foster's cheeks. As they pulled into the Film Stdio car park, they saw the mobile with Jackson and the body continue through. Freeman broke the silence,

"Have we managed to identify them yet?"

"No, a group of operatives are working on it. Our job now is to find the two aliens before any more bodies turn up."

"Blood-bath" The two men faced, Colonel Foster, "how desperate must they be to carry out such an act of...of..."

"Butchery," was the response from the Commander, "butchery, callous mutilation all in the name of survival." The doors of the car opened and the three men alighted, making their way towards the studio and Straker's office. Late at night as it was, there were few people left working in the studio but the SHADO Headquarters underground was still a hive of activity.

"Any luck at finding the aliens, Ford?"

"No, sir, Sky-one is still out looking."

"Tell Captain Waterman to return to Skydiver and get the mobiles 1 and 2 to continue a radar surveillance."

"Yes sir."

"Alec, Paul, lets step into my office shall we?"

"Lets look at the facts, in the past 5 days there have been two UFO incidents. First a UFO gets past all the moonbase defence systems and sky-one, it lands, a few minutes later blows up, three hours later reports start to come in of a body found. The medical team reports a young male, multiple organs removed including heart and liver. Then today, another UFO through all our defences, another mutilated body. Of course, we shall have to wait for Jackson's reports to find out the full extent of the incident, but for now our main priority is to locate the two aliens.

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"Mobile 1 to SHADO control,"

"Go ahead Mobile 1," Ford's voice was as articulated as ever,

"Report possible sighting of aliens, am going in pursuit."

"Roger, mobile 1, I'll tell Commander Straker." Right on cue, Commander Straker, followed by Colonel Freeman and Colonel Foster rounded the corner from Straker's office, Ford brought them up to speed.

"Mobile 1 to control,"

"Come..." Ford was cut off

"Yes Mobile 1," Straker was back in charge

"Have lost the two aliens they headed into a wooded area, we shall continue on foot."

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She slammed her pen down in frustration. Two months it had been since she had written anything half decent. The publisher had been on the phone again demanding a completion date. Well they can whistle for it! She got up and crossed the room to the window. Outside it was still, clear sky. In the starlight the lake outside shimmered, the water still, calming. Sighing, returned to her desk, contemplating how her heroine was going to get the man of her dreams and be whisked off into the sunset. What garbage! Resigned to the fact that no more would be written tonight, she picked up her cup of tea and snuggled up on the sofa, gazing at the glowing embers. Her thoughts were interrupted by a knocking at the door.

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"Keep your wits about you, both of you." The three SHADO operatives had left their mobile and had followed a path into the trees. Not one of them had forgotten the events of a few hours earlier, nor the site they had been witness too. The torches they carried were of some comfort but every so often, the snap of a twig, or the hoot of an owl would make them jump. They continued to follow the path for half an hour until they came to a clearing. In front of them was a lake and beyond was a house. No lights appeared to be on inside. The three men looked at each other before walking around the edge of the lake towards the house. They found the front door to be slightly ajar, pushing it open, their knees almost gave way at the site that greeted them. The walls that had once been a clean cream colour were now spattered with blood, some was smeared on the floor, but it was the figure lying by the sofa that made one of them faint.

"This...is...Mmmm...Mobile 1 to...control,"

"Go ahead control,"

"There's been another incident...a woman..." Silence. One of the other operatives took over,

"It's carnige sir...she's...she's.."

"How bad is it Captain?" Paul Foster asked,

"The worst it could possibly be," the voice was now bordering on hysteria, "I can only describe it as...as...carnage..."

"What have they taken?"

"Her livelihood, the bastards have taken her..."


	3. Chapter 3

Carrying two steaming cups of coffee, Alec Freeman, tentatively walked into Straker's office, placing the coffee on the desk in front of the commander.

"Thanks." Came the response.

"No word as yet from the mobiles as to the whereabouts of the aliens"  
Sighing Commander Straker said, "Yes I know Alec." His gaze was fixed on the floor.

"Why don't you go home? I'll call if the aliens are found"  
Looking up momentarily, "No Alec, Jackson will be sending his medical report through soon and it is my duty to stay here"  
At that moment, Paul Foster strode into the office, walking straight over to the drinks machine in the corner and helping himself to a large shot of whisky.

"How are you feeling Paul?" Asked Alec,

"Alright I guess, I heard about the girl, do we know who she was"

"Not yet, but Jackson and two operatives are dealing with it, what about the mobile operatives, how are they"

"Still in shock, which is understandable, I've seen the photos, God knows what it must have been like to have actually been there"

"Once they've calmed down a bit, they'll be sent for a medical"  
BANG The two men jumped as Straker's fist made contact with his desk,

"Dammit Alec, this should all be over by now, that UFO should have been stopped, this should never have been allowed to get out of control, imagine what is going to happen when Henderson finds out"  
Right on cue, one of the phones on Straker's desk rang,

"Straker"

"I have General Henderson on the line sir," came the response of Miss Ealand, "he sounds rather agitated"

"Put him through Miss Ealand," there was a momentary pause before,

"STRAKER"

"Henderson"

"Is this true what I am hearing, not only have you got two aliens walking around the English countryside, but you now have three mutilated bodies in less than a week? For your sake, I hope this is greatly exaggerated"

"No Henderson, you have been informed correctly"

"Now listen Straker, I think I have been very tolerant of your leadership, I have come to accept your methods of doing things, allowing you to run your organisation how you see fit despite my many objections but believe me this time you have gone too far...way too far! If the matter is not resolved within the next 24 hours, I shall inform the commission and I think we can say that your commanding days are numbered"

The phone went dead.  
Straker go up from behind his desk and walked out of his office. Freeman put out a hand to stop Foster following. The commander walked straight through the control room, ignoring the puzzled looks from the working operatives, and made his way up to the film studio above.

"Go home Miss Ealand," he said as he passed the secretary, "there is nothing more you can do here tonight"

"Very good sir"  
With that Straker continued walking until he was outside in the cool night air. He looked up at the clear night sky. Thinking. Somewhere out there was a race, doomed to extinction. Then the vision of the man's body flashed through his mind. For several minutes, he stood gazing upwards, then, taking a deep breath, turned and made his way back down to SHADO headquarters.

"Right Alec," he called as he marched back through his office, "get onto those mobiles and tell them to continue searching the area surrounding the girl's home. The aliens are travelling on foot so they can't get far," turning to Foster, "Paul, collect a third mobile and try and locate the second UFO, in case they try and take off in it." Going to the intercom on his desk he ordered, "Ford, order an immediate launch for Sky-One, tell Captain Waterman to survey the area surrounding this latest UFO incident"

"Yes sir," came Ford's reply, "also Dr Jackson has arrived," All three men turned to see, Jackson walk into the office "I have concluded my examinations. I shall not give you the anatomical details, it's all in the report," he placed a booklet on Straker's desk, "We have identified the two bodies, the first was a man called Mark Rutland, he was a businessman working for an electronics firm based in London, the girl, a Mary Rigby, a writer, has had some work published. All the other details are, as I said, in the report. Now if you'll excuse me Commander, Colonel's, I must run some psychological tests on the operatives who found Miss Rigby's body, analyse their current state of mind." Nodding Jackson left the office.

"I'll get that mobile on the move then." Freeman and Straker watched as Foster left the office, then Freeman turned to his commanding officer as a friend and, for the second time that evening said, "Why don't you go home and catch a few hours sleep? I'll give you a shout if anything breaks"

There was a moments pause as the two men stared at each other,  
"Alright Alec, I guess I am tired. Keep in constant communications with the mobiles and sky-one, I'll be back around six."

That night, Straker's sleep was restless, names kept appearing in his head. Mark Rutland...Mary Rigby...Mark………Mary.…...Rutland…….Rigby.  
Rigby...Rutland...Rutland...Mary...Mary...Mary Rutland.

Straker sat bolt upright in bed.


End file.
